n a hot summer day, nothing
quenches thirst like an
ice-cold beer. This amber beverage garnished with a frothy
crown comes in hundreds of
varieties that line liquor store
shelves, but where does it actually come from? Most
people know that coffee is created by pouring hot
water over ground coffee beans, and tea is made from
extracting ﬂavors and aromas from various fruits,
ﬂowers and herbs. But what is the science behind
turning grains, hops and yeast into one of America’s
most popular alcoholic beverages?
Jackie Rothberg knows. She has been brewing
her own beer for ﬁve years and started the hobby to
create a drink that appealed to her taste rather than
sampling the brew her boyfriend, Mike, concocted.
Playing with different ﬂavors and styles of beer,
such as infusing fruit into the salty German gose

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OUR TOWN MAGAZINE

JULY/AUGUST 2017

beer, won her the title of Queen of Beers in the
California-based competition. By possessing such
a royal title — in addition to having two bachelor’s
degrees, a master’s and a doctorate in the nursing
ﬁeld — Rothberg is an encyclopedia on the science
behind brewing beer, which incorporates chemistry,
physics, biology, and even some engineering.
Like most beverages, making beer begins with
water — and a lot of it. The amount and temperature
varies depending on the style of beer and grains
chosen, but the beginning temperature is never
hotter than 180 degrees. Once the proper water
temperature is reached (in what’s called a mash
tun), the chosen grains — barley, wheat, corn or
rye — are added for mashing. Mashing is when the
water temperature begins to drop to around 140 to
150 degrees and starts to pull certain sugars from the
grains, which is similar to steeping tea. Rothberg said
bigger, bolder beers require more sugars, therefore